Algebra Examples

$\frac{x - 1}{x^{2} - 1}$

Step 1

Rewrite $1$ as $1^{2}$ .

$\frac{x - 1}{x^{2} - 1^{2}}$

Step 2

Since both terms are perfect squares, factor using the difference of squares formula, $a^{2} - b^{2} = (a + b) (a - b)$ where $a = x$ and $b = 1$ .

$\frac{x - 1}{(x + 1) (x - 1)}$

Step 3

Reduce the expression $\frac{x - 1}{(x + 1) (x - 1)}$ by cancelling the common factors.

Tap for more steps...

Step 3.1

Cancel the common factor.

$\frac{x - 1}{(x + 1) (x - 1)}$

Step 3.2

Rewrite the expression.

$\frac{1}{x + 1}$